5 Farewell Card In Hindi

At the adieu affair for the Japanese consul-general aftermost Saturday, Mitsuo Kawaguchi alternate to the date afterwards carrying his accent on appeal from his colleagues and bankrupt into song. It was no sayonara articulate in Japanese but a accurate dejected Kishore Kumar hit, Kabhi alvida na kehna, articulate angle absolute and from memory.

The achievement created a buzz, abnormally amid the diplomats present. Asked if they would be beneath burden to bout up, German consul-general Rainer Schmiedchen said his acknowledgment would be not one, but two songs, en affiliation with wife Annette. “But I will sing in German. My Hindi is not any good,” he added. Seated abutting to him, French consul-general Fabrice Etienne, argot durably in cheek, said he would attack no beneath than a Tagore song. But the Thai consul-general Prasittidesh Vichitsorasatra had his anxiety durably on the ground. Asked the aforementioned question, he anon protested: “But he (Kawaguchi) was a apprentice of Hindi!”

Once the banquet got over — it started and concluded with signature Japanese dishes of Tempura and Wasabi Peas and Gari Ice Cream — Kawaguchi acclimatized bottomward to allege about his Indian connections. “Yes, I learnt Hindi for two years amid 1976 and 1978 at Banaras Hindu University,” said the affable man. Acquirements a adopted accent is encouraged in adopted casework and aback a announcement in China was not available, he chose India.

In those two years, the adolescent agent got to apperceive the “real India”. “Ours is such a cocooned actuality that we do not get to feel the beating of the people. But in those two years I was chargeless to go anywhere I capital to.” It was as allotment of his Hindi-learning endeavour that he took to films. “A chief aide told me it was a acceptable way to aces up the language. I would watch two-three Hindi films a week.” The stars he admired were Amitabh Bachchan, Raj Kapoor and Hema Malini. “The songs of the films admiring me and I capital to adept a few.”

Kawaguchi admired Sholay so abundant that he watched it five-six times. “I admired the Dosti song but I bethink alone bisected the words.” So he acclimatized for Kabhi alvida na kehna at the party.

In his address, he declared Calcutta as his “second home” accepting chock-full at the burghal alike afore he accomplished Varanasi in 1976. He was aback as the agent consul-general in 2001. During this three-year appearance in the acreage of P.C. Sorcar, he best up addition accomplishment — magic. “I saw abracadabra shows on TV and bought some books to advise myself. My tricks are simple, performed with simple items like cards and paper. It brings a smile to the faces of accouchement aback I appointment any school.” But he has never apparent a P.C. Sorcar show.

Kawaguchi is animated to accept facilitated the aperture of two Japanese restaurants in boondocks — Fuji (earlier Aoi) on Lansdowne Road in November and Matsuri in Forum in February. “Japanese expatriates would appetite a abode to booty their families out to. Japanese tourists to Bengal would be blessed as well.”